India is one of the fastest growing economies globally, and the Government is determined to make it a $5 trillion economy by 2025. The projected growth in economy would increase the disposable income and so consumption, particularly of FMCG and other consumable products.
Growth in consumable products would drive the consumption of PET as preferred packaging material. With the growing consumption of plastics, the major concern now is its collection and recycling. The Government is making the regulation stricter for reducing consumption of plastics, which is non-recyclable.
Now the manufacturers and producers are liable for safe disposal / recycling of plastic packaging, associated with their products, after the end of their life cycle. The implementing agencies have been equipped at the same time for compliance of the environmental regulations.
With growing awareness, environment protection has become an issue of global attention. To make their products sustainable, global textile, apparel and retail companies are prone to use more recycled stuff in their products and various brands have set different timelines for replacing the virgin stuff with the recycled material. Some countries have also made regulations to use a defined quantum of recycled plastic in place of virgin.
Marquee global brands are showing the way in increasing their consumption of recycled stuff. NIKE has announced that by 2020, 80% of its products will contain recycled materials. ADIDAS has set a target of using 100% recycled polyester use in all products by 2024. H&M says its Conscious Collection uses organic and recycled materials, and 26% of the brand’s offerings are produced from sustainable materials. Now 59 global companies committed to increase PET use by at least 25% by 2020.
All the above factors, coupled with amenability of PET plastic in collection and higher rate of recycling worldwide, indicate the robust growth in consumption of PET plastic, and the regulatory compulsion of recycling provides a greater opportunity for the recycling industry. Further, with enhanced focus on sustainability by the manufacturers and growing consumer preference for recycled material, the premium is likely to be commanded by recycled products over the virgin one.
Whenever one thinks of recycled PSF in India, one of the first names that comes to mind is that of Ganesha Ecosphere. Over the decades, the company has retained its long-standing position as the largest manufacturer of RPSF in India.
Ganesha Ecosphere is a company with a vision to become a global corporate citizen committed to recycling every PET bottle, which is thrown into waste with world-class recycling facilities. The company embarked on its journey in 1987 and has over time emerged as one of the leading PET recycling companies in India. It was promoted by Mr. Shyam Sundar Sharmma, Chairman, the visionary force behind the show, supported by a team of competent professionals. The company is headquartered in Kanpur with manufacturing units located in Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh), Rudrapur (Uttarakhand) and Bilaspur (Uttar Pradesh).
Manufacturing facilities and capacity
Ganesha Ecosphere has a cumulative manufacturing capacity of 118,800 tonnes per annum of RPSF and yarn. Its installed capacity comprises 108,600 TPA of RPSF, 7,200 TPA of RPSY and 3,000 TPA of dyed and texturised/twisted filament yarn. This is the largest PET waste recycling capacity in India.
GESL procures 325 tonnes of PET waste a day through a pan-India network of more than 200 scrap dealers. This extensive supply chain has helped the company enhance resource security on the one hand and transformed an urban-rural plastic waste problem into a productive resource on the other.
Mr. Shyam Sunder Sharmma says: “This was a landmark year for the company as we crossed the Rs. 1,000-crore revenue benchmark for the first time in our history. The company strengthened its business through various initiatives. We had completed the expansion of 21,000 TPA at our Bilaspur unit in February 2018 and we enjoyed the full benefit of the expanded capacity, which helped us increase the revenue and earn better margins. We worked upon operational efficiencies and increased capacity utilisation beyond 100%. We have also installed 5.04 MW rooftop solar power plant, enhancing supply stability on the one hand while rationalising costs on the other”.
Over the years, Ganesha Ecosphere emerged as the largest RPSF manufacturer in India. The company possesses a manufacturing capacity much larger than its peers. This has strengthened the company’s business model in more than one way: reinforced its position as a company that can provide any quantity and variety of fibre that may be required at any time. Besides, this scale has translated into attractive economies that have enhanced the company’s competitiveness and viability across market cycles.
The company is expanding its output by constantly adding capacity in the last one decade and continues the journey by adding up new capacities to further strengthen its industry positioning.